


if you were mine (i'd have the world) {ON HIATUS}

by orphan_account



Category: Twenty One Pilots
Genre: College AU, M/M, More tags to be added, Rating Might Change, im bad at tagging, im gonna explore minor ships a little bit i promise, josh is kinda intimidating but he's a big anxious softie, more characters to be added whoops, pastel!Tyler, punk!josh
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-27
Updated: 2016-08-30
Packaged: 2018-07-27 04:02:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 3,896
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7602628
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff"><p>can i just say holy fuck @ te amount of kudos and hits the first chapter got</p><p>because holy fuck</p></blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

running a hand through his pink curls, joshua dun lets out a sigh and plops onto his bed. the metal frame groans with the weight and he grunts as if in response. today wasn’t too bad, he thinks. he hadn’t received any of the usual shit from anyone today. there had been no glares from teachers, no anxious looks from students as he passed. today was a good day.

but the day isn’t over yet. josh still has work, thank fuck.

the shop is like a safe haven to josh. even on a good day, there is no place he would rather be.

at the music store, nobody judges him for having a nose ring or for the color of his hair; he is even free to show off his tattoos.

and then there’s the drum set.

josh's favorite part about working at an instrument shop is that anyone can try the displays. on slow days, josh loves to mess around on the drum set, which is on display near the back of the building. when he plays, he lets loose, shoving one earbud into his ear and jamming along to some metal song, which usually attracts a crowd. admittedly, josh can get a little too animated in the heat of it and he has even broken a few drum heads before. thankfully, his boss is super chill; josh only had to pay half of what it cost to get them fixed.

 

after remembering that he actually has to go to work instead of just enjoying memories of it, josh rolls forward off the bed and into a standing position, shucking off his school pants (a pair of grey cargoes), and striding over to his little dresser. after digging for a little while, he pulls out a pair of black skinny jeans and a misfits shirt.

he changes quickly, and admires his outfit for an entire two seconds before slipping on his vans, grabbing his skateboard and heading out of his dorm.

 

the college dormitories aren't that bad, by josh's standards. sure, the groundskeeper neglects what little flora there is and the beds might be the squeakiest things on earth, but josh is glad that the dorms are so small. he has never liked strangers; having a roommate would be hell.

 

it helps that the ride to the store is short. It’s only about five minutes off campus by board, if you ask josh.

as he walks through the door, the bell rings and his boss mark greets him from the guitar section.

"you're here early, dude."

josh shrugs with a smile, and walks over to the counter to put his skateboard against the wall.

 

"i'm just checking for any damage on the displays," mark calls from his spot among the guitars, "i already checked the drum set so you're good to go if you want."

"sweet, man. thanks" josh grins and practically runs towards the back. 

his shift doesn’t start for fifteen minutes, so josh has no problem with rocking out for a bit.  
the entire fifteen minutes ends up being spent rather quietly. instead of going all out and wailing on the kit like a humanoid typhoon like usual, josh practiced in smooth jazzy rhythms; mostly soft taps to the cymbals. 

now, josh is standing bent over the counter with his chin in his hand. as he waits for the first customer, he pulls out his phone and starts a game.  
five minutes pass before a soft chime rings out, the bell on the door jingling merrily as a customer enters. josh looks up and his eyes widen a bit as he takes in the sight before him. a young boy (most likely younger than josh) walks in. black leather boots over sheer stockings, plus a light purple skirt and a knitted flower printed sweater, a crown of tiny roses circling fluffy brown hair. every color is soft and pale and comforting. he almost looks like he stepped out of a teenager's tumblr selfie.

this boy is cute. 

josh realizes he is staring and he feels his face heat up a little."hello there, can i help you?", josh says after clearing his throat, feeling as though he is speaking a bit too formally. 

the boy flushes, seemingly startled to have someone talking to him. he wrings his hands nervously and looks at his feet, "i came here to check out your pianos. m-mark said you guys have some nice ones." 

josh's eyebrows rise a little, "you know mark? cool, uh, i'll go get him for ya if you want. the pianos are over there." he points to a corner where a small white piano sits, surrounded by little electronic keyboards, some in their boxes and some on display.  
the boy smiles rather sheepishly, "yeah, i would like to say hi. thanks." 

josh nods and awkwardly shuffles to the back of the store where mark's office is.  
the door is already open, so josh leans on the doorframe. "hey, uh, there's someone here to see ya.”

“if it’s my mom tell her i’m in the bathroom." 

"um, no. it’s a guy, mark. kinda pastel goth looking. flower crown." josh motions to his head as he eloquently describes the boy. 

"tyler's here? holy shit," mark laughs, "i didn’t think he'd come."  
mark gets up and josh follows him back to where the pianos, and now the boy, sit.  
the boy (tyler, apparently) stands up and receives mark's inevitable bear-hug graciously. "long time no see, man." mark says after letting tyler go.

josh stands awkwardly as the two start a conversation. he turns to go behind the counter again but then he hears his name and realizes he's being introduced.  
"this is josh. he does drums." mark grins and tyler smiles softly at him. 

holy shit his smile. 

josh brushes a sweaty palm off on his pant leg before extending it to tyler. the boy covers josh's hand with his own. tyler’s fingers are long and cool and each slim little nail is painted a soft lilac.

"i like your hair." tyler mumbles nervously.

 

"your flower crown is cute," josh mentally slaps himself at how ridiculous that sounds, but stops when he sees tyler beam at him.

 

mark addresses tyler again as their hands drop back to their sides.  
"so tyjo, why don’t you play for us? i hope you like this one, she's brand new." mark says as he gestures to the little white piano.

tyler's smile grows when he looks at it. "she's cute.", he says as he walks over and moves the stool out of the way.

he lays his fingers over the keys and closes his eyes as he starts to play.  
it’s a melody josh has never heard before, and he stares with intrigue. as the song progresses, tyler's movements get a little more animated and he starts to sing.

 

josh tries to process everything at once, and he's left speechless.

 

the only thing that stands out in josh's mind is

 

' this boy is beautiful '


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> can i just say holy fuck @ te amount of kudos and hits the first chapter got
> 
> because holy fuck

if there's one thing about the morning tyler joseph loves, it's the soft glow that filters through his little window. the pale streams of sunlight remind him that the night is dead and he is safe.

after rubbing the sleep from his eyes, tyler runs a hand through his fluffy hair and yawns as he kicks his legs over the side of the squeaky bed. he bounces on the mattress a little and the bed frame squeaks even more. tyler likes the sound. its unique, he thinks, if somewhat annoying.

standing up, he runs his hands subconsciously over his bare thighs and walks over to his little dresser, opening one of the drawers. after discovering that he is severely lacking in the clean shirts department, he sighs and dives back under the covers, picking up his phone to check the weather

 

flippity frick flop.

 

this afternoon is supposed to be hot.   
and the only bottoms he has left are tight skinny jeans. tyler considers the few pairs he has, but sighs again.

today tyler wants to feel pretty again, like he did yesterday. 

 

opening up his bottom drawer, he pulls out two dresses and lays them on his bed. 

the first is a pale blue with a black collar and trim; the second is black with a white belt attached on the back. 

after careful consideration, he chooses the first, pairing it with a black cardigan. he pulls on a pair of black stockings and steps into a small pair of platform heels. 

 

to complete the look, he goes back to his dresser and opens the first drawer, retrieving one of his flower crown headbands. this one has alternating blue and black flowers with little horns on the sides. 

 

grabbing his phone, he pulls up the messenger.

 

-to jen: could you do my makeup again today ? you do it much better than i do lol

 

-from jen: yea, no problem

 

-from jen: me and ash are in our usual spot

 

-to jen: thanks sweetie xo

 

tyler grabs his messenger bag and shoves his phone into it before rushing out of the building toward a small, frail tree in the courtyard. 

his friend ashley is sitting on her knees in the grass in front of the weathered thing, jenna sitting in front of her facing away. ashley's fingers are laced in the blonde's hair, and jenna grins when she sees tyler approaching. 

 

"you look great honey!" jenna waves to him. 

 

tyler sits down in front of them, one hand rubbing his neck absently.

swinging his bag around to his front, he makes conversation as he pulls out his makeup kit. "so i went to mark's shop yesterday."

jenna hums in response, picking up a tube of eyeliner from tyler's little collection. 

tyler repositions himself closer to jenna, letting her guide him so she can apply it. "he's got a bunch of neat pianos and there was this cute guy there."

 

both of the girls stop what they're doing- ashley in mid-braid and jenna's skilled hand stopping completely over tyler's left eye. 

"what was he like?"

 

"was he cute?"

 

"did he give you his number?"

 

"did you guys kiss?'

 

"nonononono!" tyler feels his face heat up and he frantically waves his hands. the girls start laughing at his embarrassment, and one of jenna's hands finds its way down to tyler's shoulder.

 

"we're just joshing you, sweetheart."

tyler can't help but flush a tiny bit darker at her choice of words. 

 

ashley asks from behind jenna, "what's his name, man?"

 

"his name is josh," tyler mumbles and the girls share identical grins.

 

"josh and tyler," jenna said slowly.

 

"jyler," ashley says.

 

"joshler," jenna counters and the two start giggling again. tyler feels uncomfortably hot in spite of the cool morning air.

 

"shut up guys," tyler mumbles and jenna resumes her work on tyler's face.

 

"classes start in ten," ashley says, "you have ten minutes to tell us all about it"

 

tyler squirms but resigns, his fingers lacing and unlacing as he speaks, "he didn’t really say a whole lot, but that’s probably because i was mainly talking with mark. but he's got a pretty voice?" 

 

jenna finishes his eyeliner and ashley snorts

 

tyler continues, "he's got a neat tattoo on his shoulder. he was wearing one of those shirts that have the big holes in the sides, so."

 

both of the girls smile and nod as if in approval, he takes it as a 'keep going!'

 

"he's got big brown eyes and a nose ring and pink hair," tyler glances at ashley, who has blue hair currently. she's doing a very poor job of hiding a grin.

 

he lets himself babble on,"he plays the drums so he has muscles, but not like bodybuilder shit. they're there, they're just definitely not 'in-your-face' there." 

 

"someone has a crush," jenna mumbles as she finishes up the rest of tyler's eye makeup. 

 

tyler blushes, "maybe. but it'd never work, i barely know anything about the guy."

 

"hold on a minute," ashley ties up jenna's braid in a twist and secures it before going to sit next to tyler. jenna applies gloss to tyler's lips.

 

"what did you say his last name is?"

 

"i don’t think i did," tyler rubs his lips together. jenna nods and puts tyler's makeup away.

 

the bell rings. 

 

"brendon told me there's a new kid in our english class." ashley says as the bell rings, "if i remember correctly, his name is joshua dun."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> omg cliffhanger thingy
> 
> i feel like this is horribly short ??
> 
> i know i spent more time describing tyler than anyone else and im sorry, i will work on that
> 
> hope you enjoyed
> 
> comments and kudos give me life


	3. Chapter 3

josh takes a look at his schedule. his first class today is english, which starts in about ten minutes.   
he takes the coffee pot, pours himself a cup and stuffs the flimsy schedule paper into his pocket. he then walks over to his mirror and gives himself the usual once-over.   
with his free hand, he adjusts the collar of his short sleeved, floral printed shirt. he feels as though it’s a little tight but that’s probably because he has it buttoned all the way up.   
he stands on his toes, looking down so he can see the tops of his floral vans creasing in the mirror.   
he smiles and realizes he's acting like a teenage girl. 

he grabs his backpack and exits the dorm, but before he gets a chance to exit the building, he hears a voice calling after him. 

"joshua william dun, where do you think you're going?" the voice's owner comes bouncing up to him, short heels clacking on the tile floor.

"i thought you were already outside," josh lifts his hands as if in surrender. 

"i would've texted you to ask where you were," the girl said, playfully slapping josh's arm. 

josh rolls his eyes, "you don't have to know exactly where i am all the time, debby."

debby rolls her eyes.

they walk out into the courtyard and to their usual place. josh checks his watch, less than five minutes to get to class.  
on one of the concrete benches, a tall boy with a black pompadour hairdo waves them over. 

"you guys are late!" he says and takes a drag of a cigarette, "you don't wanna miss our first day of english, do you?"

josh laughs, "of course not beebo," he replies, sarcasm dripping from his voice 

the taller boy pats his shoulder as he stands up, and the three of them make small talk until the bell rings.

their class is in the next building over. there are probably close to fifty students filing through the hallway and into an amphitheater-style classroom.  
josh takes a sweeping glance over everyone once he takes a seat at the back left of the room. 

there are quite a few seats empty, and everyone there seems to be segregated into groups of friends.  
there's one group of about five or six skinny boys, mostly with greasy looking hair; josh notes that one of them has a reddish afro.   
another is smaller; a group of three. There is another one with an afro, and one with hideous sideburns. the latter is holding hands with a rather normal looking guy with brownish hair. there are two groups mingling with each other that look entirely comprised of stoners, and josh's gaze moves on.  
another group has a girl with hair that is dyed half purple and half black, and a girl with very short blue hair holding hands with a blonde. when he looks over to the person next to the blonde, josh chokes on his coffee. 

is that tyler?

josh feels a hand rubbing his back as he regains his breath. "thanks, brendon."

"what was that, dude?"

"nothing, man. i'm good."

"did you see gerard making out with frank or something?"

"who?"

"why do i have to introduce you to everyone?"

just then, the class was silenced by a shaved-bald man standing at the front of the room. the guy has thick eyebrows and looks like one of his hands could easily wrap around josh's neck.

"welcome to your first day of english, ladies and gentlemen." the man says as he lets his gaze drift over everyone in the room. josh feels uncomfortable when the teacher's eyes linger a second too long on him.

"my name is mister lewis," the guy shrugs and half-smiles, "though i doubt any of you care."

josh, along with a couple of other students, lets out a small chuckle. 

"i hate to jump right into a lesson, but that’s what we're going to do," mr lewis smiles pleasantly as groans and an 'oh come on!' fill the room.

"i'm going to assign you each a partner. you will work with your partner with no complaints," he pulls out a clipboard from a drawer in his desk.

"way is with mccracken," he starts, laughter as well as angry yelling fills the room. a flustered looking boy with greasy black hair stands up stiffly from beside the first afro-boy and walks over to an empty seat in the middle of the room. one of the stoners, a guy with longer hair and a scruffy beard laughs as he joins the first.

the professor rolls his eyes and continues the list. 

it feels like forever has passed, and josh realizes nearly everyone is with a partner, when it happens.

 

"last but not least, joseph, you're partnered with dun."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yay another shitty cliffhanger kind of thing
> 
> what will happen next ???
> 
> can probably guess


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i have no excuse for being this late really  
> i actually had it done on time but my fren who proofs had business to attend to otherwise so here it is- a week late and unproofed  
> but the show must go on

tyler's heart skips a beat as he hears the name; apparently brendon was right. he looked around and spotted the boy- which wasnt hard, considering he was the only other person without a partner, not to mention he had pink hair.

 

"so we meet again," he wipes his sweaty palms on the skirt of his dress when he reaches josh's desk. 

 

"it seems fate has brought us together," josh laughs and gestures to the seat next to him for tyler to sit.

 

as he sits mr lewis begins speaking again, ignoring the chatter filling the classroom. "i want you all to work together to write a poem. you will both have to present the poem to the class." 

 

the boy with the sideburns shoots his hand up immediately. 

 

"yes, stump?"

 

"could we write a song instead? like with music to it and stuff?"

 

mister lewis smiles and says simply, "bonus points."

 

tyler smiles, this should be easy.

 

he pulls his messenger into his lap. he pulls out a purple binder and a little black pencil pouch and sets them on the desk. 

glancing up tyler notices josh's eyes on him. he's biting his lip and his hands are fidgeting. tyler jumps a bit in surprise.

 

josh starts laughing, "im sorry dude, i didnt mean to scare you or something. your crown is kinda falling."

 

tyler reaches up and sure enough, it was almost over his forehead. he readjusts the headband to its proper seating on his head and wills away the flush that has crawled up his neck.

 

"so," josh pats a rhythm on his thighs for a moment, "im hoping you're a writer? i can only drum... and play a little bit of trumpet but thats a different story." he laughs, scratching the back of his neck.

 

tyler blinks, "uh, yeah. ive actually written a few songs before, like lyrics and stuff." he shifts in his chair to more fully face the pink haired boy.

 

"weird question: are you in a band?" 

 

"like the marching band or-?"

 

"like an actual band- guitars and shit."

 

"i was i guess," tyler shrugs. "a few friends of mine in high school helped me make a bunch of songs, but like, we had bass and drums and i had piano and stuff," he explains lamely.

 

"cool. i actually used to be in one too," josh starts up another rhythm on his thighs. "we were called house of heroes. only did coffee shop gigs though," josh laughs again. "i was actually a filler for the original drummer."

 

tyler smiles, "thats cool. we called ourselves twenty one pilots."

 

"wow," josh's smile makes tyler's heart swell.

 

"yeah," tyler feels he is apparently cursed with this blush whenever josh is around. he picks up one of his black pens and opens his binder to his collection of looseleaf paper. 

 

"ive had a bunch of stuff bouncing around my head lately," tyler mumbles before he starts writing.

 

josh watches as he writes, notices every twitch and every blink tyler makes; he's raptured in a sort of awe. the words seem to flow almost effortlessly from his pen.

 

josh smiles as tyler drops the pen and look up at him. tyler looks almost sullen but he smiles back at josh. josh's own smile falters a tad.

 

"can i see?" josh's hand brushes against tyler's accidentally. 

their eyes meet again but they both pull their hands away and look elsewhere quickly.

 

"of course," tyler slides the paper onto josh's desk. josh picks it up and begins reading, eyebrows furrowing slightly.

 

"who's ruby?" josh asks after a while.

 

tyler shrugs, not really wanting to give a real answer.

 

"well anyway, these are some kick ass lyrics."

 

tyler smiles softly, "thanks josh."

 

they sit rather awkwardly for a moment before josh breaks the silence again.

 

"ive got work again this afternoon, but would you wanna hang out maybe?" he runs his hand through his pink curls. 

 

"i'd love to," tyler smoothes out the skirt of his dress. "i'll head over to the shop when you're ready?"

 

"sounds great," josh slides a piece of paper with a phone number on it.

 

"smooth," tyler laughs

 

josh winks and tyler's stomach erupts with butterflies.

 

suddenly, the bell rings and the professor dismisses all of the students.

 

jenna and ashley come running over to tyler as josh says his goodbye.

 

"oh my god ty, is that josh?" jenna bounces excitedly as they walk out of the classroom.

 

"he looks like he'd be a good fuck," says ashley and tyler feels like dying on the spot.

 

"yes, that's him," tyler clears his throat. "and i have a date with him this afternoon."

 

both girls let out loud giggly noises and capture tyler in a tight hug-sandwich. 

the boy pushes both of them off after a moment, laughing. 

 

"our baby is growing up!" jenna wipes a fake tear.

 

then it hits him- this is the first date he's had in years.

 

"yeah, um, ive gotta go do a thing, meetupwithyouguyslaterbye-" tyler rushes off toward the bathrooms, leaving a confused ashley and jenna behind.

 

as soon as he locks himself in a stall, he bangs his head against the stall.

 

'i hope i dont fuck this up'


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> filler group chat because im a piece of shit

ashes invited blondie, crybaby and trees to the chat

bread: well fuck are we doing this

blondie: doing what

crybaby: y am i here

ashes: patrick where are u

trees: what do you want omg im trying to do homework

crybaby: "homework"

ashes: we have brought u all here for a reason my friends

blondie: and whats that babe?

bread: so we can discuss The Ship

trees: which one tho

ashes: joshler

trees: what

blondie: tyler and josh

trees: i have yet to meet josh 

crybaby: OM G

bread: how long do u guys think before they hook up

crybaby: i assumed they already did tbh

blondie: i'd say a little while. tyler's kind of reserved. i dont even know about josh but if he cares about tyler then he'll respect it if he wants to wait

ashes: i give it eleven minutes

bread: tRU

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> life is kind of shit rn plus school started and my chapter 5 AND 6 drafts ended up deleted somehow and ive had writer's block ever since so here's some filler  
> need some ideas please 
> 
> sorry

**Author's Note:**

> hello there
> 
> I've been working on this for a while but i was scared to post it because its my first time writing with these guys  
> this is also going to be my first multi-chapter fic  
> so yay
> 
> i hope everyone enjoys


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